Age of Heroes: Shattered Time (Snippets)
by Spartan-029
Summary: Crona is a young dragoness, curious, intelligent, and notoriously impatient. Her ultimate goal is to become a skilled Mist Weaver, a wielder of powerful magic. But her ambition has made her a social outcast in society where the young are not inclined to seek out the life of a scholar. (A short preview for the upcoming story of the same title.)
1. Chapter 1

"Absolutely not!" An older dragon snapped, silencing a young dragoness standing on his doorstep.

The dragoness stood dumbfounded before him. She hadn't gotten past her greeting before her elder had interrupted her. The rise of his voice made her shrink, eyes darting about to watch her surroundings. Her inner voice yelled at her to regain control of the situation; to recover what was left of her initial plan for coming to this old dragon's home.

"B-but I didn't even-" She looked up but was cut off again.  
"I know who you are, Crona." The elder continued as if not hearing her. "I have heard quite a lot about you. All of us elders know about you. We talk. We know why you seek each of us out, and we do not approve of what you're trying to accomplish."

"Please listen, Elder Heliks!" Crona blurted, suddenly finding her voice. "I've been studying privately for years, and I know the fundamentals. I could even show you the notes I've been taking. I promise I can prove my skills to you!" With a glance over her shoulder at the saddlebags fastened around her hips, she contemplated grabbing one of the many scrolls brought along to prove her worth. She looked back to the elder hoping that he would be interested. Instead, he scowled and curled his lip, showing his teeth; yellowed with age, but no less threatening.

"I have told you 'No', Crona!" He barked firmly, catching the attention of some nearby pedestrians. Crona noticed and wilted further when they took note of who was standing before Elder Heliks. She thought she heard a couple passing comments of, 'She's at it again'.

The elder glowered at the onlookers and they quickly returned to their business. Turning back to the dragoness, he held his speech until she was looking him in the eye again. "I understand your ambition and it is very admirable. But as the other elders have said before, you are far too young to be studying the Mist at all." The harsh look he had served her so far, began to soften a little around the edges, "You know that that level of Mist-weaving is dangerous – even for those of us who have studied it for decades. Now, please, leave me in peace. You can use the public library if you want to read, but mine is off limits."

"... I understand." With eyes lowered to the ground, Crona gave as courteous of a bow as she could muster. "Thank you for your time, Elder."

Heliks watched her walk off down the street in the direction of the city's main library. The way her wings drooped and her tail dragged, reminded him of a flower losing sunlight. He had been genuinely impressed and even a little bit intrigued with this young female who had taken such a powerful interest in learning advanced Mist-weaving. If he were being honest with himself, he and a couple of the other elders would have loved to have taken her under their tutelage. But since Crona began these rounds of asking for formal training, they had all been held back by the same individual.

"Well, that went about as expected." A voice came from behind. Heliks turned to another elder, a fire-spitter, emerge from cover within his private study. The emergent stood on his hindlegs and held a leather-bound book with one wing talon while his other casually thumbed through the pages of notes, much to Heliks' annoyance. "I always hope that she will change her strategy when it comes to approaching those of higher knowledge."

"I don't understand why you continue to encourage this behaviour." Heliks frowned deeply and snatched the book away from the fire-spitter, who merely inclined his head and smiled at the gesture. The damn fool seemed much more pleased that he had any right to be. "If you're going to mentor her further, don't dangle what she desires in front of her nose, only to snatch it away again. That's just cruel." He admonished.

"My dear Heliks," the other elder said with a sigh, as if he had had to explain his motives many times over. "If she is going to learn Mist-weaving, then she has to know that approaching all of its forms are not the same. You know that just as well as I."

Heliks grunted and went about replacing his book in its proper spot on a shelf.

"So far, she has approached nearly every elder in our city for the past three years. And while her skills have improved and changed, her method of asking for further assistance has grown beyond stale."

Heliks angled his head towards him but didn't take further steps to make the other get to their point. This guy always loved talking around subjects instead of tackling them.

"I know some youngsters take longer than others to realize this. But you have your own methodology of teaching. And I have mine. Simple as that."

"Simple." Heliks snorted. "Understanding the Mist is anything but simple."

"Indeed." His visitor nodded and extended an empty talon towards the book Heliks had placed. A strange wet smell began to permeate the air, and a gentle pull of telekinesis lifted the item from the shelf and floated it gracefully back to where he had originally picked it up, on a pile of discarded books. "But we can all use the occasional reminder that things aren't always what we expect."

Heliks wasn't sure if he should ban his long-time friend from his house too. To him it seemed there were lines not to cross; such as knowing his own library better than himself.

"Indeed."


	2. The Apprentice

The morning came far too quickly. Crona went about the day in a state One might imagine a reanimated corpse would; like the old youngling's tale of Zeharia's Shame where said fabled dragon turned to raise an army from the dead.

She was barely able to focus on her lesson with Tectonica, and a couple times their wyvern teacher had gotten visibly agitated with her, ruffling her wings and her already-intimidating saw-like scales standing on end. But the Sovereign had never called her out. Even when Crona found herself nodding off, and suddenly jerked wide awake, knocking her ink and writing tools around, had Tectonica refrained from chastising her. Most of her younger classmates giggled at her, and she was vaguely aware that they probably knew that their teacher was being lenient.

During the midday meal, she spent her free time sleeping in the shade of a large tree in the school gardens – at least until Titanus made his presence known.

At first, she did her best to ignore him, shutting out his lewd calls to her and the obnoxious displays of fire-breathing into the air that looked like they were supposed to impress her. It was only once he got fed up with being ignored and reached out to touch her, that Crona took action.

She managed to stab him with the barb on her wing, pricking him in a soft spot between his neck and shoulders and receiving the instant gratification as he flinched and finally backed off.

By the time he had recovered from his initial shock of being hit, she was already striding away in a beeline towards the back of the academy, where the cliffs dropped off over the valley. It didn't take her long to meet up with Ampirus and Terra to find a new place to rest for the remainder of their break.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Volcanus asked when he saw the dark bags under her eyes after classes had been released. He had sat himself to wait for her, a little to the side of the great bridge connecting to the rest of the city, out of the way of the rest of the student body currently finding their way back home.

"I'm sorry, Master." Crona murmured, fighting off a yawn. "I guess… I got… Carried away last night."

"I cannot fault you for that, my dear." The old blue drake smiled gently at her, giving a subtle shake of his head. "In fact, I more than understand – and more than half-expected it. But if this apprenticeship is to work out, I need my student to take care of herself."

Crona blushed and averted her eyes in shame. "Sorry Master Volcanus. I'll do better. I promise."

"I know you will." Volcanus said, rising to his feet. "I just want you to be aware, that I have as much at stake as you do."

That was news to Crona. "You do?"

"Of course." He said with a nod, looking out over the stream of parents and students meeting halfway on their walk back from the academy.

"You are the first pupil I've had in nearly a hundred and fifty years. If you didn't take care of yourself and something were to happen, I dare say that I would have failed you as a mentor. And no doubt the populace would never want their offspring to study under me again." His expression gave the appearance of regret, or at the very least he looked to be remembering something from long ago that had left him disappointed in some way.

Volcanus' eyes drifted down to meet hers. "Can you do that for me? Take care of yourself, I mean."

Crona gazed at him in silence, mouth feeling a little dry. She hadn't meant to ruin her sleep, but it had been difficult to contain her excitement at finally getting to study the Mist. A cold breeze brushed her back and she felt her feathers stand on end. With a reflexive shiver, she nodded. "I promise, Master."

Volcanus' expression warmed. "Good. Shall we be off then, my dear?"

The two began their leisurely cross of the bridge, Volcanus greeting all the passersby's as they greeted him back, all the while Crona wished nothing more than to hide from all the heads turning to her as she walked beside her new mentor. She ducked her head and raised her wings a little, trying to be subtle about wanting to shield herself from the attention. The eyes on her felt as if they may as well have been hundreds of paws reaching out and touching her and 'uneasy' did not come close to describing how she felt about it.

Volcanus must have picked up on her discomfort after a while, because he stopped greeting the residents and looked to her. "Tell me Crona. What was it you studied last night?"

Crona's eyes snapped to her mentor's and her voice vanished in the moment of surprise. The drake gave a hearty laugh of amusement. "As I mentioned, I half-expected you to be up late, preparing for the test I have for you today. I'm merely curious as to what you did to prepare yourself."

"O-oh…" Crona choked, managing to find her voice again. Was it that obvious, even to this Sovereign who knew next to nothing about her? With a little shake of her head, she cleared her mind and gathered her thoughts.

She had been up until sunrise reading the book from Hravail that she had skimmed a couple times earlier, properly this time. But that felt too private to disclose, and Crona opted to not speak about it to her new mentor,

"I was studying my notes on mist-weaving that I've taken over the years to review what I know." She stated. "What you said about Oracles yesterday peaked my interest and I looked through my notes to see if I had any obscure notes on them."

"And what did you find?" The drake asked, looking at her from the corner of his eye.

Crona frowned and turned her contemplation to the cobblestone pathway they were currently walking along after having crossed into the city. "Nothing, sadly."

"Not surprising." Volcanus remarked with a shrug. "The existence of Oracles is considered to be nearly mythical in this age, but they are extraordinary beings of remarkable abilities."

"You sound as if you've met several." Crona observed, and Volcanus gave another chuckle.

"Perhaps that is a misleading portrayal on my part. I only know of Synn. But I have been captivated by his abilities to predict the future since the day I met him."

Crona could not curb her wide-eyed fascination as he shot a glance back to her. "-And judging by your expression, I may have to divulge that story to you."

"Please?" She asked hopefully, suddenly thinking back to that first encounter with the white drake in the Sovereign's temple. His careful but precise control of the Mist, how he hadn't been affected as she stopped time…

Volcanus slowed his pace a little and for a long moment, Crona felt as if she were a youngling again, asking the elders for ever more stories and material for her to learn from. She knew that being respectful was important. But her insatiable appetite for knowledge felt irresistible.

"Very well." Volcanus eventually said with a bob of his head. "It's a story I haven't told in a great many decades, so it may be a good idea to see how well my memory has held up since then."

The little squeal of delight registered as coming from herself much later than it should, and Crona quickened her pace to put herself abreast of the sovereign as he began his tale.

"I've known Synn since I was very small. Or perhaps to be more accurate, he has known me." Volcanus started with a smile when he noticed her excitement.

"As I'm sure you are aware, families like that of Nitrus' where offspring have the chance to inherit their family's social status are not uncommon in this city. This has been normal for our state since before I was hatched. However, I was not one such individual. And neither were my family."

That was a bit surprising. She would have guessed that with Titanus being lined up for the sovereignty after Volcanus' retirement, it would have been the case for the old drake as well. Had she been wrong to be so critical about the way things seemed to be done here? Clearly, not everything was as it seemed.

"But we were happy." Volcanus continued. "We were all fortunate enough to become educated, and had little worries regarding food, shelter and family support. The city then was very much like it is today, though, obviously smaller. The lower districts were far sparser and didn't see much expansion until well into my ninth decade when we received a burst in population."

"How come?" Crona asked quizzically.

Volcanus promptly elaborated, "It should happen once every several hundred years. When the small moon eclipses his larger brother, the magic of our world swells like a great river torrent. Our kind naturally congregate towards areas where the Mist is most abundant, but during this great swelling of energy, we become far more sensitive and empowered. Our connection to the Mist is at its pinnacle during this time. A fire breather can scorch the land for a hundred wing beats in a single breath. Ice breathers can cover the plains in ice for miles on the hottest summer day. Earth-movers sprout plant life wherever they set foot, and the hydras create rivers through the harshest of deserts."

 _Thrump!_

Crona had been so focused on the riveting speech that she had neglected to watch were she was going. Papers and writing tools were thankfully stored away in bags when she stumbled over a high-lying stone and ended up far more intimate with the details in road than she ever hoped to be again.

"… Or so I'm told." Volcanus held his speech and nudged her up.

She looked around as she got up, afraid to see anyone stopping to stare or make a commotion. To Crona's great relief however, everyone else seemed to calmly carry on with their own business.

The tale gave her pause though. She had never heard of such a phenomenon in her life, even from the elders in her own city, twelve-hundred years in the future, and could hardly fathom the very idea of such feats being physically possible.

He asked if she was alright as they continued down a smaller street, but thankfully kept from commenting further.

"At any rate, Academy City experienced a great time of fertility during one of these times. Never before have I heard or seen a greater number of clutches conceived and hatched. Simultaneously, we also had a population burst from external sources." He looked to Crona who nodded, urging him to continue. "Ferals."

"What?" She exclaimed, stopping dead in her tracks. "You had feral dragons come to this city?" It was by then that she noticed how some of the residents around them had paused to stare at them, no doubt having overheard her little outburst. Some expressions showed confusion and curiosity, but most looked worried or disgusted.

"Indeed we did." Volcanus nodded, paying his fellow dragons no mind. "It was not as you may presume though. There was no conflict between our kinds. Nothing to rally groups anyway. There were multiple clans from outlying lands and various races looking to settle somewhere new. Many being from a place we both know, called Eastern City."

He shot Crona a knowing smile and gestured for them to turn down yet another street she hadn't traversed before.

"They wished to live here, because this territory has always had an abundance of food and mist to sustain us. There were some… exchanges, at first… but none were seriously hurt. Eventually, my grandfather stepped forward with the sovereigns to address the feral clans. He proposed that they select a leader from each group as a representative. All the clans would hold equal share of the territory as long as they were willing to ensure the prosperity to all who resided within it." Volcanus ended, with a flair of his tail towards their surroundings.

"So that means that everyone suddenly had a stake in this city's survival; to work together." Crona surmised.

"Exactly." Volcanus nodded, seeming pleased with her deduction.

"Did they take the offer?"

"Not initially." He shook his head, sounding regretful, as if he had done something wrong himself. "But my grandfather, grandmother, father and mother were some of many who helped convinced them that it would be in their best interest to stand with us, rather than against us."

Crona arched an eyebrow. "And how did they manage that?" She asked.

A cryptic smile tugged at the corner of Volcanus' mouth. "Let's just say that we had to be the bigger drakes."

Crona frowned. She hated when the elder scholars – mainly her own great grandfather – threw riddles at her. Many a times it had meant a lot of sleepless nights and endless research just to find a crumb of an answer, and the answers were not always worth it in her opinion. Deep down, she hoped that wherever Hravail was, he was getting a chill up his spine.

"At any rate, Synn had predicted the clans coming and the outcome not long before it came to pass. I imagine that if we did not have him in the city, bloodshed would most certainly have occurred, and quite unnecessarily at that."

"I understand. Because of Synn's prediction about the migrating ferals beforehand, you all had time to diplomatically solve the problem." Crona said, nodding in recognition.

"Yes. Everyone listened to him before that event though, so it wasn't much of a surprise that we listened then either. He had built up a reputation to that point by delivering fortunetelling to parent who asked, upon the day of their offspring's hatching. A service which he still delivers to this day."

"I had no idea." She mumbled, the details Synn had disclosed earlier.

"When I eventually decided to choose a mate, I went to Synn, hoping that he could tell me who to choose."

The statement caught her off guard a little and Crona turned herself away from the sovereign to mask her skepticism.

She didn't know why she was surprised, what with Terra and Ampirus' arranged partnership, but the idea of an individual asking a clairvoyant such a shallow question had somehow never crossed her mind. Maybe it was because she had never seen the wise ones in her own home, as dragons to be constantly harassed by individuals asking to whom they should mate, where to hunt the best food, or whether to get up the next morning or not.

Volcanus gave a throaty snort and shook his head, clearly annoyed at his past actions. "I was young and didn't know any better. Synn did not budge no matter how much I begged, pleaded and pressured him to. Ironically, it was a female drake of my kind from one of the feral clans who got me to stop." He gazed out at the horizon and sighed wistfully. They had been walking upwards through the streets and had reached one of the plateaus overlooking the lower parts of Academy City.

"She had caught me harassing our dear Oracle one morning and demanded that I stop being such a brute about it." He laughed out loud, a great guttural sound that Crona could feel shake her from the inside out. "Can you imagine? Me! Being called a 'brute'? And by a feral no less."

"No." She chuckled nervously, averting her eyes. "I can't imagine anyone saying that to you."

Volcanus chuckled a little more before continuing his tale. "Well, I was about to lash out at her when Synn came over and placed a paw on my shoulder. Clearly, he had seen our quarrel and knew I felt strongly about what I was doing, but he told me to speak with her and that I 'had damned well better be civil about it'."

Crona let out a giggle but said nothing. She had a hard time picturing the young-looking Synn sounding like an elderly according to Volcanus' memory. Maybe she would have liked the blind drake had she met him then, or at least under different circumstances.

"It was because of Synn that I met the love of my life that day. I obviously apologized profusely after that, and even insisted that he be at the ceremony of our bonding. Regardless, I learned a very important lesson that day." He looked back to Crona who wasn't masking her curiosity. "The world is not going to toss you what you what you want just because you keep asking for it. One must earn it."

"But you didn't earn your mate." Crona said pointedly before snapping her jaws shut, realizing too late that her words were more than a little disrespectful to the elder who was offering to mold her into a mist-weaver.

"You are right. I did not earn the love of my life. Not by a long shot." He didn't seem to take offense at her words. "Not at first anyway. It took many years, but I eventually won her over, and I loved her every day as if my life depended on it. We often learn lessons too late in our lives and are unable to go back and fix them. We ask ourselves, 'Could I have done it differently? And if so, how?' But the fact is, we cannot go back in time. We cannot change our pasts. But we _can_ do good in the present and work for a better future. Not just for ourselves, but for everyone."

As she listened, she found herself unable to speak, merely nodding at her new mentor's wise words. They made sense, but she could not help but feel that they somehow didn't apply to her. Here she was, over a thousand years from home, speaking with an elder from before the war ever started. None of this should have been possible.

Synn had said to her that sometimes, the individual is more important than the clan. Was she being selfish by wanting to have her family and friends back? Most definitely, but what dragon wouldn't take the chance to bring back their loved ones? She wasn't sure what Synn wanted from her, but perhaps she could find out. Maybe he truly had the senses to look beyond this time and place, but if that were the case, why had he not done anything about it? Were the coming events really what he thought were the best course of action for the overall good of the world?

"That was a wonderful trip down memory lane." Volcanus sighed, breaking Crona free of her musings. "We are here."

The two stopped in front of a large, multi-story home, sculpted from packed adobe and clearly hardened by fire. Tiny crystals were embedded into the material and glittered in the late afternoon sunlight like reflections on the water's surface. To either side of the main entrance and stretching towards the rear of the home on both sides was a luscious garden of dense bushes sprouting bright blue flowers from long thorny stems. The flower bushes also grew along the sides of the building, each spaced about a tail's length apart. The aroma they gave off was heady and sweet, but not unpleasant.

The unfamiliar scent coupled with the sensation of the cool winter air filled her lungs, and tickled the back of her throat causing her to cough.

"Apologies for the smell." Volcanus said, making his way up the front walkway to the entrance. "It can be a tad overwhelming if one is not used to it."

"It's… okay." Crona wheezed after another cough mid-sentence. "I never expected a fire-breather to have a garden this nice so close to their home."

"I suppose not many would expect such a thing." Volcanus agreed as he lifted a heavy paw to draw back the curtain of dried moss covering the doorway, allowing them both entry. "But these flowers are quite exceptional. They are known as Fire Lilies, and unlike other flowering plants, they can survive in the heat we fire-breathers give off. That is, assuming we provide the proper levels of hydration and fertilizer to them. Many fire-drakes and -dragons of my parents' time took up raising these plants as a sort of pass time, when they weren't out hunting or gathering for the city."

"I see." Was all Crona managed to say as she stifled another cough. The ground looked well-tailored with moss growing like a green blanket over any exposed earth, and the bushes themselves were a rich healthy green with little to no brown discoloration.

Volcanus stopped to look at a cluster of flowers just beside the door. He picked three of the larger specimens and brought them inside. "For a fire-breather, to be able to care for flora is a testament to one's own dedication and control of our natural abilities."

Crona watched as the Mist once again became visible to her, swirling like a rolling fog around the three flowers in Volcanus' paw. She had never seen the Mist simply manifest without being molded into a spell first and the sight of raw magic was mesmerizing to behold.

Her talons twitched as she recognized an urge to reach out and touch it, but considering that doing so would likely disrupt Volcanus' spell, Crona managed to refrain.

When she looked up at the drake again, she noticed that he had now stopped just inside a small entry chamber and was levitating the flowers before her.

"Will you take hold of these, my dear?" He asked, and Crona reached out for them with her paw but the flowers instantly jerked away. Confused, she looked to Volcanus to see him give a slow shake of his massive head. "Not like that. Take… _hold_ … of them." He flexed his clawed digits for emphasis.

Not entirely certain why she was feeling nervous about doing something she had done so many times before, Crona swallowed visibly and extended both paws on each side of the cluster of levitating flowers, intent on being careful. Volcanus had stopped what he was doing to wait for her, clearly studying her method as she concentrated on the Mist.

In her mind's eye Crona visualized a new set of paws positioned just below the force that kept the flowers levitated. She could sense the gentle hold on them loosen, and then watched as they had a short fall before bouncing on an invisible cloud. Now in her willed grasp she stood there, balancing on her hind legs while looking as though she were cupping an invisible ball in her paws.

"Very good." Volcanus nodded appraisingly. "Come. I shall get some water and a fire started."

Crona followed him further inside to a bigger space, stepping carefully while levitating the flowers as she took a look about the new chamber.

Shelves were dug into the walls with varying sizes of bowls and crockeries resting on several of them. Most of the shelves housed various plants and flowers that stood in neat little clay containers or lay bundled, only some of which she could recognize. Lavender, jasmine, dried rhubarb, licorice and ginger root were just some of the items she recognized. The entire room had a strong, sweet smell to it with a hint of earthy spices to keep it from becoming nauseating, and inhaling deeply made her relax.

Overall, it had a distinctive homey feel to it with all the staked shelves and greenery. The storage cellars she was used to back home were built for practicality, not comfort.

Volcanus seemed to notice her staring around because he gave a throaty cough to grab her attention. "Crona, would you mind setting that dish over the fire pit for me?" He gestured to a large potbelly crockery with three smooth river rocks embedded into its base to serve as a stand.

Crona glanced at Volcanus, who was now leaning his head out the window in the far corner of the chamber, paying her no mind. She studied the flowers still in her magical grip, feeling unsure if she should set them down yet or not. Eventually she shifted her focus on the Mist, passing her control over them to a single paw.

Nervously she reached towards the large dish with the other, extending the range of her control to its edge. She had experience with manipulating multiple objects before, but they were all little things, like paper and writing tools that weren't terribly expensive or easily breakable. And none were nearly as heavy as the thing she was attempting to levitate now.

She managed to will the Mist towards its edge, closing her eyes to see how it gently reached around the object in time with the extension of her arm. The bowl moved slightly, its rock stand grinding against the stone shelf. Crona adjusted her grip on it, wiggling her talon reflexively as if inching them more around its brim. She gave another tug, this time moving it to the very edge of the shelf.

With one final tug the bowl was clear off the high surface, but Crona had underestimated the weight of the bowl and it quickly dropped towards the floor.

Panicking she let the flowers fall and reached out with her other paw, shifting all her concentration to reinforce her grip. Its fall slowed, but not before it hit the edge of the fire pit, striking it with a loud _crack._

The potbelly dish broke into several pieces, and Crona realized that inside it had been stored several smaller bowls, now laying shattered as well.

For a long time, Crona stood utterly silent, mortified at what had just happened. Slowly, she turned her head to see Volcanus staring at the scene with a blank expression on his face. She felt a lump building in her throat. Her first day as a Mist Weaver's apprentice and the only thing she had achieved was destroying his property. She could feel the tightening sensation in her throat and her breathing was growing labored as she tried to keep from panicking. She looked back to the broken remains on the floor. Maybe she could fix them somehow.

"D-don't worry." She stammered, crouching to scoop up the broken shards in her talons. "I may be able to fix this."

"Is that so?" Volcanus said. Oddly, he sounded more intrigued than upset.

Crona looked at him, surprised at how calm he appeared. The elders of Sol City were always very touchy about their material possessions. Keeping them neat and tidy, and their studies in a state of minimal chaos was an absolute must. Clearly that was not the case for this elder.

"I.. can give it a try." She stammered, realizing that she may have promised more than she could deliver.

"You may proceed then." Volcanus nodded and gave an encouraging gesture with his paw.

Crona spent a couple minutes sorting through the broken pottery until she found two pieces that lined up with each other. Settling her nerves, she sucked in a deep breath and concentrated. Elementalism – the art of manipulating the elements – was not a craft she was particularly skilled in, but she hoped that what little she knew would be enough to mend the broken pottery, and this disastrous situation.

She held the two pieces together and concentrated on where their edges met; thinking about the feeling of earth under her paws, picturing its energy manifest as she had seen it do so for Earth Movers. The sweet smell in the chamber was taken over by a heavy scent of clay as the Mist in the room slowly ran itself through her, down from her chest to the tips of her claws where it lingered, slowly turning a light shade of green from its regular blue. Once it had completely changed to a vibrant green, Crona slowly ran a talon along the crack between the pieces, the changed Mist following in her wake. She felt the tiny grains of clay moving to join the broken edges together, reaching to weave in a seam between them. It was a slow process and there was an obvious difference in the pottery's texture along the broken edge, but she did her best to smooth it out as much as she could.

When she finally released her hold on the element infused Mist, Crona opened her eyes and studied her work. The seam was rough and the paint was chipped along the break. Had the dish not been decorated, perhaps any cursory inspection wouldn't have brought attention to the fact that it had been broken. Passable.

"That is quite impressive." Volcanus stated as he leaned over Crona, eyeing the pottery. "I dare say, my dear, that you are far more remarkable than my sources portrayed you." His eyes met hers as she turned to look at him. In that moment Crona felt an uneasiness she couldn't place.

"Kineticism, And elementalism? And in one so young. You are truly a gem to your family and city."

Crona blinked several times, clearly being thrown off by the praise. "Th-thank you Master." She finally said with a blush. "But, are you not upset?"

The old drake laughed. "Oh, I'm more than entitled to be upset about my property being broken. Anyone would be, lest they be lying to you-" He tilted his head to give her a wink, she couldn't entirely deduce how he felt about this. "-But I think we can use this little mishap to both our benefits regarding your lessons, starting tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Crona asked, cocking her head in puzzlement. "Didn't you wish to test me today?"

"I just did." Volcanus answered with a coy smile.

"Initially, I had planned to see if you really could use Kineticism as I had been told, but you just proved that something like that would have been a waste of both our time."

The blue drake extended a paw and levitated the pile of fragments off the floor. He gave a graceful wave and set them back onto their shelf where Crona had gotten them before turning back to her. "I believe that you have far more experience and potential than I originally expected, judging by what you just showed me." He gestured to the large painted bowl and its mended shard.

"Do not fret, Crona. I believe that we can work with this as part of your training." The drake continued to ponder aloud. "I may ask for a few favors in return here and there."

Crona fixed him with a skeptical look, hoping that he would elaborate on any amended terms of their agreement, but Volcanus just smiled tiredly and levitated the flowers to her.

"I'll explain later on." He said, "But for now, I'm going to release you early for the day."

Volcanus stepped closer and Crona suddenly felt very small as his large form loomed over her.

"Master Volcanus?" She swallowed hard, suddenly feeling anxious.

Volcanus let out sigh as he frowned. "I was lenient with you today, because I expected it to happen." He explained, walk passed her out of the chamber. Crona took the hint and followed him to the front entrance.

"But tomorrow, I will be quite disappointed to learn that you have not headed my advice and rested as well as instructed. Concentration in mist-weaving is key, and One cannot concentrate properly when deprived of sleep."

Again, Crona had to avert her eyes. It was a careless mistake, but one that had the best of intentions. She silently cursed herself for letting her curiosity and need to prove herself get the better of her. If she was going to make this apprenticeship work, she would have to follow Volcanus' orders to the letter.

The feeling of the drake's claw on her cheek shocked her out of her thoughts with a noticeable jolt. Her eyes snapped back up to his, as she tried desperately to determine if she had missed anything he had said, in her tired state.

"Go home my dear. Rest." The sovereign said in a murmur. She felt something akin to a tingle in her ears that seemed to come from his voice as he spoke. It was like warm water, pleasantly trickling down the back of her neck and over her shoulders, spreading the sensation and relaxing her mind. Volcanus was right, she needed to go rest.

With a bow to her new master, Crona turned from his doorway and walked down the hill towards her temporary home. The warm, fuzzy sensation lingered on the back of her neck.

As disappointed as she was in herself, she had to admit that the drake had made the right choice sending her home. She would have to make sure she was well rested for her lessons, starting tomorrow.


End file.
